Hurt
by chicgeekitten
Summary: Set in the summer before the current season. Moments between Michonne & Daryl mostly.


**A/N**: _**yay to writing! So here's a Dixonne short which can be multi- chaptered if you guys enjoy it. This is set in the summer before the beginning of this season. Michonne and Daryl meet up every so often while she goes on a quest to search for the governor. At first, he tries to help her but soon enough, his motives change. Enjoy! :) **_

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"French Onion Soup. With the Swiss cheese oozing off the mug. Something about caramelized onions and cheese. Gets me going." Daryl chuckled softly as he at the meat off the bird he had caught for dinner. "But a Wooded Duck beats it every time." He sucked on his fingers and looked up at Michonnne. "You sure you don't want a bite?"

She shook her head and wrapped the blanket they had around her shoulders. "I'm alright. How do you do that? You know birds, animals, you're excellent at tracking…I want to say you hunted before shit hit the fan but I'm starting to think there's more to you than that." She winked at her friend and placed her hands over the fire. "Biology teacher."

Daryl's laughter roared throughout the abandoned wooded area and he looked over to Michonne. "Wrong, again. Why are you so worried about what I did for a living? I hardly know anything about you."

Her smile remained as he spoke. "I'm not worried, Daryl. Just curious. I'll figure it out. As for me, I like to keep the mystery."

Daryl finished off his dinner and wiped his hands on his pants. "You do a good job at it."

Their conversation drifted for a bit and the two stared at each other until Michonne spoke up. "So, French Onion Soup. That does it for you, huh?"

"Got that right."

"Well, that's a first."

"Haha. And what does it for you?"

"You don't ask a lady those questions." She teased, looking at the fire and then back at Daryl.

"Aw well that ain't right. I told you mine. You tell me yours. And you know I'm talking about food." He shyly looked over to her and then placed his hands over the fire as well.

"Cheese Fries. Good Ol' Cheese fries with Ranch dressing. All loaded up. Trillion Calories." She shook her head. "I'd have to wait for a cheat day to have them. Funny how all of those things are just…irrelevant nowadays." She noticed Daryl rubbing his own arms and arched an eyebrow. "I don't bite you know. Get in here." She opened the blanket and Daryl hesitantly took a seat next to her.

"Carl asks for you. So does Rick." He tried to stay warm. "You'll die out here alone."

"Are you questioning my abilities?"

"Nah. I know what you're capable of but it's cold."

"I've been through worse. It's just a summer wind. Nothing like the winter. Those times I was out with Andrea…" She trailed off and swallowed her words.

Daryl noticed the change and wrapped an arm around her. "You don't have to keep looking for him. His trail went cold long ago. I thought I convinced you the last time I found you. Every time I go out there to look for you, I'm afraid your trail will go cold too. And then I have to go back to the prison and tell everyone. I don't want to know what that's like…"

"I'm not your responsibility."

"I'm not saying that!" He shifted his body so he faced her. "I'm saying that I'm not prepared for that. I'm not prepared to make that statement. To look at Carl in the eyes and tell him you're gone. Jesus, Michonne, there are so many things going on back at the prison! Things are great. We've been incident free…"

"So ya'll don't need me. You're fine."

"Why are you so stubborn?"

"Why are **you**?"

The silence was deafening and Michonne began to stand up. "I'm going west. I'll go out there, see what I can find. Maybe some things for you, Rick, Judith. Carl mentioned wanting some comics. I saw a town not so far from here."

"It'll be littered with walkers. The closer you get to a city, the worse it will get."

"I'll deal with it. What do you want? Knives? Tools?" She looked down at Daryl, wrapped in her blanket and he reached for her slender hand.

"You. I want you to come back with me. I want you to stop running off. I want to …figure this out."

"Figure what out, Daryl?" She glared at him, avoiding the thumping in her chest.

"Oh so it's like that?"

"It's like that." She retorted quietly.

Daryl stood up in front of her, inching up closer, his eyes fixated on hers, the tips of his digits softly brushing against the flesh of her arms. "You were never good at lying."

Michonne tried to look away but felt cornered by her friend, the person she had shared most of the summer tracking down the governor. The person she felt most comfortable with after Rick. The person who learned a lot about her fears and her pride and the reason why she kept to herself. She felt cornered by a man. The one she caught herself staring at a few times and caught staring at her. The man who gave her intense feelings of wanting to scream and be alone and grab hold of him so he'd never leave at the same time. She didn't understand or want to understand the electric pull she felt whenever he was around for it wasn't right and she knew it. She knew falling for anyone or even thinking of falling for anyone was setting herself up for failure. Yet, she couldn't help bringing her hand up to trace his jaw and she couldn't help her lips curling up into a smile, returning the one he possessed.

"Now, tell me again that this ain't right, Michonne." He muttered the last few words, his lips lingering slightly over hers and the sudden noise emanating not far from them interrupting the inevitable.

Her senses quickly returning, Michonne pulled out her katana swiftly, looking around. "What was that?" She whispered as Daryl kept an arm back to shield her and reached for his crossbow with his other arm.

"Walkers. We've gotta go." He put out the fire, gathering their things and loading the car as quick as possible. "I cleared this place!"

Michonne climbed into the passenger seat as Daryl started the car. "It's getting dark, they probably heard something." She looked towards the rearview mirror noticing the small herd of walkers behind them. "There's getting closer."

Daryl struggled with the ignition, finally starting up the engine as a few walked lunged themselves to the car. He stepped on the gas firmly driving and swerving away from them, looking back and laughing. "Haha! Didn't I tell you we make a good team! WOO!" He turned back again and breathed easily once there were no walkers in sight. He began to drive smoothly, looking over to Michonne, his smile still there.

"Incident free, huh?"

"That's right. No signs of danger. Real food, a warm bed." He bit his lip at the last statement and kept his eyes on the road.

"I'll go to the prison tonight. Tomorrow, I have to head out West. You can come with me..."

"I can't." Daryl frowned slightly, careful not to show his expression to Michonne. "I need to be with everyone else. We're a community now."

"Alright." She remained silent and then looked over to him. "I won't disappear. I'll always come back."

"Yeah. And you'll always run off."

Without another word, the two made their ways back to the prison.


End file.
